1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a digital video recorder, such as an HDD (Hard Disk Drive) recorder, a DVD (Digital Versatile Disc) recorder or a digital VCR (Video Cassette Recorder), which is to be connected to a DV (Digital Video) camcorder via an IEEE (Institute of Electrical & Electronics Engineers) 1394 serial bus, and which is capable of recording DV stream sent from the DV camcorder.
2. Description of the Related Art
In a system of a digital video recorder, such as an HDD recorder, and a DV camcorder connected to the digital video recorder via an IEEE 1394 serial bus, assume that DV stream contained in a DV tape of the DV camcorder from an arbitrary position of the DV tape to an end position of the DV tape (end of recordable area of the DV tape) is dubbed (recorded) onto a recording medium of the digital video recorder. Generally, when the DV camcorder completes reproduction for the dubbing up to the end position of the DV tape, the mode of the DV camcorder is changed from a reproduction mode to a stop mode. When the mode of the DV camcorder is changed from the reproduction mode to the stop mode, the digital video recorder determines that the reproduction to the end position of the DV tape has been completed, thereby ending the dubbing.
However, if the DV camcorder is stopped not because the DV tape has been reproduced to the end of the DV tape, but because e.g. the reproduction of the DV tape is interrupted, a user is required to additionally dub DV stream recorded on the DV tape from the stop position of the DV tape (reproduction position at the time of the stop) to the end position of the DV tape. Thus, if the mode of the DV camcorder is changed from the reproduction mode to the stop mode, and if the mode change is caused because the reproduction of the DV tape is interrupted, the digital video recorder is required to notify the user to that effect so as to recommend that the user additionally dubs the DV stream recorded on the DV tape from the stop position of the DV tape. Furthermore, even if the mode change to the stop mode is caused because the DV tape has been reproduced to the end of the DV tape, it is desirable to notify the user that the dubbing of the DV stream from the DV tape has been completed.
A conventional digital video recorder of this kind is designed to achieve this object in the following manner. If the mode of a DV camcorder is changed from a reproduction mode to a stop mode, the digital video recorder sends a reproduction command to the DV camcorder to determine whether the DV camcorder succeeds or fails reproduction of its DV tape in response to the reproduction command. If it succeeds, the digital video recorder determines that the reproduction of the DV tape is interrupted, and notifies a user to that effect, while if it fails, the digital video recorder determines that the dubbing of DV stream from the DV tape has been completed, and notifies the user to that effect.
However, there is still a problem depending on the kind of DV camcorders. More specifically, the above-described conventional digital video recorder is not adapted to a DV camcorder which automatically changes its mode from a reproduction mode to a rewind mode when reproduction of a DV tape of the DV camcorder is completed to the end position of the DV tape. This is because, when the mode of the DV camcorder is changed from the reproduction mode to the rewind mode, the conventional digital video recorder cannot determine a cause of the mode change whether a user has commanded the DV camcorder to stop (interrupt) the reproduction and rewind the DV tape, or whether the DV camcorder has automatically rewound the DV tape after the dubbing of the DV stream from the DV tape is completed. Accordingly, the conventional digital video recorder cannot notify the user whether the reproduction of the DV tape is interrupted, or the dubbing of the DV stream from the DV tape is completed.